


just my miniature fire extinguisher

by orphan_account



Category: As It Is (Band)
Genre: Fluff, Humor, M/M, Meet-Cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-31
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-12-27 03:56:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18296348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Ben is so tired and busy that he doesn't notice he's dropped something on the sidewalk. A stranger notices, however.





	just my miniature fire extinguisher

Ben is so tired. He’d love nothing more than to go home and turn off his phone and sleep for a year or two, but there’s still so much that needs to be done and no time to do it all. He knew he should have made up excuses when they asked him if he’d be fine taking on a little extra responsibility, but he’d frozen up. Now look where that’s gotten him.

“Excuse me.”

He walks as fast as he can along the sidewalk. The business meeting had gone pretty well, all things considered. He hadn’t passed out or started crying or run out of the room in terror. And as far as he was aware, everyone else seemed pleased with what had been discussed and decided upon. At least Ben didn’t have to do any actual presenting. 

“Sorry, um, I just, I’m pretty sure this is yours—”

He technically still has at least thirty minutes of lunch left, but he missed the bus that would have taken him back with enough time to eat the lunch that he has waiting in the employee fridge at the office. He should have just eaten the lunch provided at the meeting, but he was so nervous he probably wouldn’t have been able to keep any of it down. 

“Excuse me, I— sorry, you, uh, dropped your thing?” 

Ben stops. That voice has been following him for… a minute or two? He had assumed the person was talking to someone else but… three times isn’t a coincidence, right?

He turns around to see…

The most beautiful man he’s ever seen in his entire life. A short light-brown haired man with sky blue eyes and a nervous smile and a hoodie with a My Chemical Romance pin and a _radiance_ to him that blinds Ben. Ben actually takes half a step backwards in awe of how… inexplicably amazing the man seems. He’s just. Perfect. 

As Ben stares, captivated by this complete stranger, something comes up to block Ben’s view of his perfect face.

A miniature fire extinguisher.

 _Ben’s_ miniature fire extinguisher. 

Ben’s hand immediately goes to his coat pocket, which is EMPTY. NO. No, no, no, no, no. His face turns red and his entire being is consumed with embarrassment. 

“Oh my god,” he groans, covering his face with both hands. He very nearly falls to his knees on the ground, in the middle of the busy sidewalk. “Oh my god, I’m so—”

“No, it’s just—” the stranger says, coming a little closer and lowering the fire extinguisher. “It’s uh, this is yours, right? I mean, I’m pretty sure I saw you drop it when you were taking something out of your pocket about a block back. I just, I’m so sorry, I tried to catch you when it happened, but—”

“Thank you,” Ben mumbles into his hands. Shaking he reaches out to take his fire extinguisher and shoves it back deep into his pocket. Where it should have stayed, bloody thing. “That’s just. Super embarrassing. I’m so sorry.”

“No, it’s okay!” the stranger says holding up his hands in surrender quickly. “It’s, ah, it’s alright.”

No, it’s not alright. Ben might just die, right here. The cutest, most beautiful, most perfect guy he’s ever seen and he’s irreparably ruined their first ever meeting by dropping his bloody fire extinguisher. What even is the point of living, if he’s going to—

“No, um. I have one too?” the stranger says. Ben looks up at him in confusion and his eyes nearly pop out of his head as the stranger takes out a tiny fire extinguisher that’s nearly identical to Ben’s. Except, instead of being a solid black like Ben’s, this one is light blue and has a little cartoon of a dragon breathing cartoon fire with a red X mark over the fire.

Ben’s heart jumps in his chest. “Are you,” he says in a hushed whisper.

The stranger smiles shyly. He blinks his perfect blue eyes and, for a moment, they’re glowing with a tiny, faint blue glow. Like the embers of a fire. The stranger blinks again and it’s gone.

Ben drops his briefcase on the ground. “You’re a dragon too,” he whispers.

The stranger reaches a hand up to play with his hair. “Yeah, um. I… am. My name’s Patty, by the way. Patty Walters. I, uh. I’m glad I could catch your fire extinguisher.”

Ben’s face goes red again. “I’m Ben,” he says quickly. “I’m sorry— thank you so much, again. I, uh. Do you want to get lunch? Or tea? Not necessarily today, it could be anytime you want. Or—” he cuts himself off before he embarrasses himself any further.

Patty’s cheeks are pink too and he tangles his fingers in his hair, almost self-consciously. “Um. That, uh, sounds nice. If— You’re not busy? You seemed—”

“I’m not busy.” Ben says immediately. He can text them, or something. Fuck them all, he deserves to ask for the rest of the day off. Or the rest of the year off. No, he’s probably not thinking straight about this (ha, ha, ha) but right now, with Patty— the third dragon he’s ever met in his entire life— smiling in front of him, he really doesn’t care. 

He and Patty both make sure their fire extinguishers are safely back in their pockets before they start walking, side by side, towards their new destination.


End file.
